Cornwall United Church Manse

The Manse

It was not until the quarterly meeting on November 21, 1870 that a decision was made to erect or purchase a Mission House for the church in Cornwall. Zacheriah Mayhew was the one chosen for this important task. It was only a few weeks later on December 12, that Mayhew had received permission to purchase a piece of land from one Mr. F. Strong. It is said that the land cost a total of £775. Money had to be raised in order to make such a purchase. It had been decided therefore, that three acres of land would be kept for the Mission House and pasture and the rest was to be sold to the highest bidder. It was also decided that any outbuildings on the property that were not required would also be sold. Other Methodist congregations also made donations for the purchase of the land. Because there are no records of a house being built on the land, it was assumed that the Strong dwelling had become the Parsonage house12.

A second manse was built in 1898 on the same property and used for almost a century until it was torn down and a new manse was purchased in 197213. Over the years some of the original land was sold for lots and the last of the property was sold in 197214. The manse that was purchased in 1972 was located on 6 Centennial Drive. It is interesting to note that after that manse had been sold it would later be attached to the ‘Bonnie Brae’ restaurant which is now ‘Sam’s Restaurant’. A fourth and final manse was purchased in 1983 and was located on 10 Laura Jean Crescent. That manse was not in use very long as the Cornwall United Church no longer sustains a manse and has not in the last number of years15. It is said that the original manse was located behind the current ‘Buzzy’s’ restaurant.